BRS acquires Marine Depot? WOW!

[BeltedCoyote]

If they don't have the distribution they are not.
MD had Atlanta and Nevada to send it out of.
BRS is going to find this an issue because of lack of distribution.

Depending on the buyout though, I would think BRS also got the distribution?

 

[Brian_68]

Sounds like BRS bought the name to reduce competition. i will be surprised if they keep MD distribution centers long term.

 

[TeotheCoral]

Hail to Lord Ryan Batcheller !

 

[RBZ]

This statement doesn't sound like it.

BRS purchased Marine Depot and is consolidating operations to its headquarters in Golden Valley, Minnesota.

 

[trmiv]

FWIW, the biggest difference for me bw Marine Depot and BRS is that Marine Depot didn't charge taxes in Florida while BRS does.

Every out of state retailer will be doing that by July 1st in Florida. BRS was just getting ahead of it. The law was passed years ago and signed into law April for companies to comply by July 1st.

 

[BigSkyRich]

Just the way corporate America works. I'm happy with BRS. Just hope less competition keeps them honest and focused on customer service.

 

[GuppyHJD]

That investment firm sure is throwing money around to make BRS a monopoly.

Don't see this as a good thing for the industry or pricing

 

[kingjames_dc5]

I believe it’s a partnership that’s has evolved over time at least that’s what I’m reading out of all the stuff I see. I follow them both and saltwater aquarium on social media.

 

[salty150]

Cue the inevitable video from Randy and Ryan telling us how this is going to make it "better" for us the consumer...

 

[Sleepydoc]

I'm a BRS fan, and I still don't like this. Too much centralization of power. Next to nothing good about that.

I know I’m gonna be the outlier here cause everyone LOVES BRS soo much, but….
Boooooo
Monopolization sucks. This will only hurt the industry in The long run IMO.

I’m in the same boat. I really like BRS they have good prices and I’ve always had good service with them. Plus they’re local to me, so I can just drive over and pick stuff up the next day, but Marine Depot is good, too. They carry different inventory, and having choices and competition in the market is a good thing.

 

[ARCkeeper]

Just got it. I order from both, but if the item I need is the same price, I will always go with MD. No tax and shipping is infinitely faster. Not to mention they use UPS instead of FedEx which is by far the more reliable shipper.

I WISH BRS used FedEx. My last 2 orders shipped with some company named SpeeDee, and they were anything but. Orders used to get to me in WI in 2-4 days. Both orders with SpeeDee took twice as long, and tracking showed my last order sat for 4 days at their facility less than 40 miles away because they didn't have enough drivers to deliver it. I have actually been using saltwateraquarium.com more lately for that reason.

 

[hotdrop]

The one nice thing about this is that now they are big enough to ignore MAP of they feel like it. They are by far the biggest game in town and they can tell eco tech and Neptune to pound sand if they want to break MAP. Similar to how amazon/Walmart/target sometimes break MAP

 

[Low Tech Reefer]

Nothing against BRS, but I'm marine depot guy.. Great service, and faster shipping.

Agreed, Marine Depot had great customer service.

 

[KrisReef]

Turns out we are flying into Minn but won't land in time to drive by BRS. But My wife says maybe we can stop in on the way home... This will give me a chance to talk with them to make certain they don't mess with my West Coast fast delivery from the company they just engulfed.

Do you think they will listen?

Maybe I can help them make a Video about the death of MD. I could say a few kind words, and get all teary eyed and we could all pay our last respects.

 

[((FORDTECH))]

BRS does not sell a good variety of frozen foods. I just placed an order with MD for my Ocean Nutrition Formula Variety Pack - 2 LB box. and RODS food.
Cant find them anywhere for a reasonable price. This really SUCKS!
This is the same thing that happened to Dr. Fosters. I AM at a loss.

This is exactly what I’m upset about. I only buy my frozen food from MD. So now what am I gunna do? Is brs gunna now start to sell the frozen food?

 

[salty150]

The one nice thing about this is that now they are big enough to ignore MAP of they feel like it. They are by far the biggest game in town and they can tell eco tech and Neptune to pound sand if they want to break MAP. Similar to how amazon/Walmart/target sometimes break MAP

You mean now they might give more than 10% off on a "sale"...?

lol, right...

 

[smiley28]

@FishyFishFish 100% correct.

 

[gobble]

You knew when they took an investor it wasn't going to be good for the employees or customers. They'll slim it down, package it up and sell it. Happens every time.

 

[Johnjman]

Will Aquamaxx be gone ?!!!

 

[trmiv]

You knew when they took an investor it wasn't going to be good for the employees or customers. They'll slim it down, package it up and sell it. Happens every time.

looking at Bertram’s history that doesn’t appear to be how they operate. They invest in middle market or top of small market companies, help build them up through more acquisitions, investments and improvements, and try to turn them into market leaders. Some they’ve cashed out on when they get sold to bigger companies. Some they haven’t. Just today they exited Paula’s Choice when Unilever bought the after being involved for 10 years. At one point they were invested in PDI before it was sold to Eaton, but PDI still exists. As far as I can tell most of the brands they invested in still exist either independently or under a parent company.